Artemis Avery and the Boy Who Lived
by ThatTinyRedhead
Summary: She did her best to veer from the path her parents laid out before her. She made them proud, being sorted into Slytherin, but she never told them what the Sorting Hat had told her before putting her there: "I see great things in your future, Artemis Avery. Even more, I see good things in your future."
1. The Journey from the Platform

Chapter One – The Journey from Platform Nine and Three-Quarters

King's Cross Station was packed with muggles, as usual. Men, women, and children alike milled about, trying to find their platforms and get on their trains to find seats. Trollies were pushed around with large suitcases, bumping into people at times and disrupting the flow of foot traffic through the train station.

Artemis Avery was one of those people, accompanied by her parents and younger brother, Janus, except that none of them were muggles. She pushed her own trolley, upon which was her large trunk with a single A on the lid, a book bag filled with her first year books purchased from Flourish and Blotts several weeks earlier, and a gilded cage with her barn owl, Meg. Her other school supplies were packed neatly in her trunk, including her heavy cauldron for potions, golden scales, gloves, her school robes, and everything else she or her parents thought she would need between September 1st and Christmas break.

"Platform nine and three quarters!" Artemis heard somewhere behind her. A quick glance over her shoulder showed her the matriarch of the Weasley family, Molly, and several of her redheaded children making their way to the platform, not far behind the Averys. Artemis had heard stories of the Weasleys - her parents called them bloodtraitors - and knew that they were easily identifiable by their bright red hair, old clothes, and second-hand school supplies. She didn't know the names of the children, although she knew that several Weasleys were already Hogwarts students and another one would be starting year one with her.

Madame Avery rolled her eyes and ushered Artemis and Janus forward until they stood just in front of the platform entrance, blocking Artemis's view of the Weasley family. "That hideous woman needs to stop yelling about the platform unless she wants the aurors to show up."

Master Avery patted his wife's arm soothingly. "Don't worry dear, no one is paying attention to her - and even if they were, no one would worry about the ramblings of a woman in tattered clothes in the middle of a train station." Taking his attention from his wife, he leaned down to his eleven year-old daughter and put a hand on her shoulder, gesturing forward. "You remember what we talked about to get onto the platform, yes?"

"Yes, papa," she said, staring at the brick wall positioned between platforms nine and ten.

"Then let's go," he said. He reached around her and grasped the handle of the trolley next to her hands, and they set off at a brisk pace toward the wall.

Artemis felt a stab of fear as they neared the wall. She knew how to get to the platform of course; she'd been told several times growing up and had accompanied one of her older cousins to the train one year, but even with magic, she did not like running directly into a brick wall.

 _Into_ was the perfect word, for Master Avery and Artemis did not hit the wall, but merely ran through it like it was nothing more than a cloud. Artemis's eyes cleared quickly as they arrived on the platform for the Hogwarts Express.

The large red train awaited them, steam billowing out of a pipe at the front of the train. They continued walking in the direction of the rest of the families gathering, and Madame Avery and Janus appeared behind them moments later.

The Avery family was relatively early to the station. Madame Avery insisted that they avoid the crowds - whether to avoid people who might turn them in for dark magic or seeing more muggle families with magical children than ever before, Artemis did not know. She was glad that she would get the first choice of compartments, however, and she was excited to find Draco.

Draco Malfoy, one of her only childhood friends. Artemis and her brother were only allowed to interact with other children of the Sacred Twenty-Eight, and even then, Madame Avery was determined that they would not be around the children of bloodtraitors. She also spent quite a bit of time with Pansy Parkinson, a girl Artemis found altogether dull, and the Greengrass sisters. Daphne would be in Artemis's year as well, and Artemis was not particularly looking forward to sharing a dorm with her, assuming that they both were sorted into Slytherin.

If their parents had any say in it, there would be no other option for any of the Malfoy, Greengrass, Parkinson, or Avery children - they would all undoubtedly be in Slytherin.

Artemis had her luggage loaded into the train, keeping her small bag that included some money her parents had given her for the term, her lucky medallion, and probably some dried nettles floating around the bottom of the bag. Her wand (walnut, eleven and one quarter inches, thestral hair, unbending) was tucked inside the long sleeve of her shirt for easy access. She didn't know many spells, only _lumos_ , _nox_ , and _alohamora_ , since it was technically illegal for an underaged witch or wizard to do magic outside of Hogwarts.

However, she knew that it was also illegal for her parents to have served He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named, so she figured that her learning a few of the most basic charms before classes actually began was a relatively low risk.

Madame Avery pulled Artemis aside after her things were loaded into the train. "Now, Artemis, I wanted to make sure you understand your role here," she said, her voice high and cold. Artemis couldn't remember a single time in her life that she heard her mother's voice as anything besides high and cold.

"Yes, mama," she said, keeping her voice meek. Over the years, she had come to realize that while her father was the head of the household, her mother held all the power (and all the money) of the Avery family and was to be treated with the utmost respect unless she wanted to be disowned by her entire family. Keeping a meek persona around her mother allowed her to glide through the house like she was their golden child, when in reality, all she wanted to do was talk to people her own age who didn't want He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named to rise to power. Draco was a good friend, but he was easily swayed by his father's ideals.

"I expect that you will be sorted into Slytherin as every Avery before you has been," Madame Avery said, "and that you will get high marks in every class. I have already spoken to the Malfoys and Lucius has talked to Draco's godfather, the potions master at Hogwarts, to keep an eye on the both of you and make sure that you two stay out of trouble."

Artemis thought that getting Severus Snape to watch over them at school was a bit extreme - they had only snuck off and used some magical fireworks once that summer and their parents had separated them until school began. It was enough of a punishment - next time they wanted to do something fun, they would know better than to just sneak out. By next summer, they would surely know spells that would help them meet up - and spells that would be far more fun that just a few firecrackers.

However, she was excited to learn potions from her best friend's godfather. She wanted nothing more than to be potions master one day. She'd spent most of her allowance on potions books and ingredients, practicing in her bathroom at home. She had almost mastered the fire-breathing potion (she couldn't get much more than sparks to come out of her mouth, but she knew she almost had it) and had a small stock of swelling solution that Draco had asked her to brew up if she could to use throughout the school year. He would likely want to prank people, and she told him she would help where she could, but she mainly wanted to study potions.

If she had it her way, she would become the best potions master in the world and invent new potions. Maybe something to allow temporary mind reading or a potion that mimicked the effects of gillyweed without having to choke down slimy leaves. Something wonderful that would make her mark on the world and give some pride back to the Avery name. She didn't want to be associated with a family whose name was best known for helping He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named, but if she had to be, she would do her best to distance herself from it.

"I'm sure you will make us proud," her mother sniffed.

"Of course, mama," Artemis said.

There were no hugs goodbye except between Artemis and her younger brother, who looked to be only barely holding back his tears that she was going to Hogwarts without him. Janus was only six years old and would be starting Hogwarts when Artemis was getting ready to take her OWLs. She knew that after this, she likely wouldn't have much time for him, since she wasn't planning on returning home for holidays if at all possible. But out of anyone in her family, she certainly loved her brother.

"I'll write you every week," she promised him. "You can send all of your notes back through Meg."

Janus sniffed but nodded and hugged her again.

Their mother chided him as he did so. "Stop making a fuss," she hissed under her breath so no one else would hear.

Artemis climbed on the train with one last farewell wave and began to walk down the corridor to find Draco, whom she was sure was already on the train.

She was right. He was already seated in a compartment with his two other friends, Vincent Crabbe and Gregory Goyle, and they were trading chocolate frog cards.

"Hello, Artemis," Draco said when she entered the compartment. He looked like he almost wanted to get up and hug her, but didn't want to be embarrassed in front of his friends. "Good to see you again."

It felt so formal, Artemis thought. It had only been a few weeks since they'd seen one another, and they'd written since then. She hated how cold he was becoming, likely because of his father.

Artemis sat down lightly on the edge of her seat, wishing that she'd gotten into trading chocolate frog cards long ago (her mother had forbidden them in the house, saying they were disgusting creatures). She watched them trade for a while, not making her own input and just observing. Draco made snide remarks when Crabbe tried to offer him a Dumbledore card for a Merlin one that Draco had been holding onto for quite a while.

Soon, the train started up and quickly picked up speed. Artemis noticed several red haired boys walking down the hall outside their compartment headed in different directions, and she felt strange watching the Weasleys make their way to compartments on the train. The youngest, Artemis figured, was the one peeking into each compartment trying to find a place to sit. He had dirt on his nose and looked slightly miserable, which she thought was fair. They were toward the back of the train and there were obviously few places left to sit.

Once the foot traffic settled down, the only sounds Artemis heard were the roar of the train and Draco making an exchange for a Salazar Slytherin card.

"Did you know that Harry Potter is going to be at Hogwarts this year?" Draco asked her after a while, finally ending his trading session.

She looked up suddenly from where she had been fiddling with her wand. Sparks dripped, tiny and lazy, from the end of it onto her lap and disappeared. "Mama had mentioned something about it," she said, "but I didn't know for sure."

"He's probably on the train right now," Draco said, glancing around slyly like Harry was hiding invisibly in their compartment. "I wonder where he's been all these years. I wonder what he looks like."

Unlike other children their age, Draco and Artemis never played make believe that they were the Boy Who Lived. Not only would their parents have forbidden it had they found out they had, but neither child was particularly interested in pretending to be Harry Potter. Instead, they speculated who he was, where he was, and what adventures he'd gotten into since defeating the Dark Lord. In their make believe games, they went on adventures, fighting giants, killing trolls, riding dragons, and anything else they could come up with. They hadn't played such games since they were small children, and now that they were a bit older, they knew how ridiculous it was that a boy their age was off on those adventures, but it was the best they could do.

After they stopped playing make believe, they had started with magical firecrackers, but they found the latter to be much more fun.

"I heard he has a scar," Artemis added, pointing to her forehead. She had heard her father saying something about it not too long before heading to Hogwarts. "It's shaped like lightning."

Draco's eyes widened. "I think I met him," he said, thinking back to his robes fitting in Diagon Alley a few weeks prior. "He was with that half-giant that works at Hogwarts."

Artemis's eyebrows furrowed. "The half-giant?" she asked. Her parents had mentioned odd "creatures" who worked at Hogwarts, but she couldn't remember any mention of a half-giant.

"The gamekeeper," Draco explained. "I don't remember his name, Mum was talking about it with Father a few months ago when I got my letter. Father was debating having me go to Durmstrang instead, but decided that Hogwarts was a Malfoy legacy and I just had to go. I don't remember them mentioning a name."

Artemis nodded, taking in this new information. She thought she'd learned everything about Hogwarts that she could, and here she was, on her way there and still learning new things.

She already knew about the different Houses, Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw, and Slytherin, and where their dormitories were located. She knew about the Sorting ceremony, who the Heads of Houses were, how the points system worked for the House Cup. She knew that when she became a second year, she would try out for the Quidditch team and that she wanted to be a beater (and that she wanted to wait until the coveted Nimbus 2001 came out before asking her parents for a new broom). She knew that her family expected her to be in Slytherin but that she didn't necessarily want to be, if only to intentionally disappoint them. She knew that there were secret passageways in the castle that could help her and Draco with pranks, should they be able to discover them, and that to get into the kitchens, she would have to tickle the pear in a portrait in the dungeons.

She also knew about the people, at least in general. Professor Dumbledore, the headmaster, and his deputy headmistress, Professor McGonagall. Professor Snape, Draco's godfather, the potions professor, and the Head of Slytherin House. Various other professors she knew she would encounter at one point or another in the next seven years, along with the caretaker of Hogwarts, Argus Filch. Her parents had complained about him being a squib for so long that she felt she had already met him (and had decided to stay as far out of his way as possible). She had not, however, heard anything about the gamekeeper being a half-giant.

"I don't think many people know," Draco finally said with a shrug. He turned to look out the window, watching the scenery roll past as they sped toward Hogwarts. "Seems rather unfortunate to me."

Artemis said nothing. She knew the stigma against giants, and half-giants, especially to families like her own and Draco's. Obviously, it was a very well-hidden secret if even her father didn't know, or if her mother had managed not to say it.

They were quiet for a while. Crabbe and Goyle continued trading cards back and forth for a while as the train roared on.

Sometime later, a girl their age with bushy brown hair and already wearing her school robes slid their compartment door open. "Have you seen a toad anywhere?" she asked, her voice sounding rather pretentious as if she were on a very important mission. "A boy named Neville's lost one."

Draco was already rearing back with a sneer, likely to tell her to shove off and that obviously they hadn't seen a toad since their door had been closed, but Artemis cut him off. "We haven't," she said, "the door's been closed since we started moving."

The girl looked disappointed, but nodded and closed the door again.

"She didn't look familiar, did she?" Draco asked, eying the door.

"No," Artemis confirmed.

"Must be a mudblood," he muttered under his breath.

Artemis froze. She had heard the term out of her parents' mouths dozens of times, even out of the Malfoy family's mouths, but she'd never heard Draco use the slur.

He noticed her shock and shrugged. "It's true," he said. "I'd recognize a pureblood, or even a half-blood student. The only ones I don't know are mudbloods, for obvious reasons."

Artemis glared at him. "You shouldn't use that word," she said angrily. "It's cruel."

He looked at her for a moment and then had to look away, going back to staring at the landscape. He didn't reply, but it seemed as if he'd caved to her wish.

At least for now.


	2. The Sorting Hat

A/N: Sorry for the short chapters, they will get longer the further into the story we get. I'm attempting to follow the book as closely as I can when it comes to details, but this is also an AU so of course, things will change. I'm keeping the same number of chapters in each book in each of these stories, so _Artemis Avery and the Boy Who Lived_ will have 17 chapters, while the next one, _Artemis Avery and the Potions Master_ will have 18, and so on through all seven books. It'll take me a while to do all this, but this story has been running through my brain for years and I'm determined to finish it.

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA

Chapter Two: The Sorting Hat

The rest of the train ride would have gone by rather quickly had Draco not decided to wander off and look for Harry Potter. He dragged Crabbe and Goyle along with him, but Artemis decided she wanted to stay in their compartment and take a nap. Her mother had woken her up early to get prepared for the train and she just wanted a little more sleep.

They woke her up when they came back only a few minutes later. Draco was grumbling about Harry apparently making friends with the youngest Weasley and Goyle was nursing a bloody finger against his chest. Artemis wanted to ask what happened, but Goyle seemed to be especially grumpy after whatever had happened in the other compartment. Draco brushed it off with a mumble of, "Stupid Potter," and settled into his seat bitterly.

They changed not long before pulling into the station at Hogwarts, Artemis vastly enjoying her brand new robes for Hogwarts, even though it only had the school crest on it as of yet. She couldn't wait to proudly wear her House crest (though she truly hoped it would not be green and silver). Disembarking the train, the four of them followed the crowd of first years that broke off from the rest of the students.

"Firs' years!" a large man was yelling. Artemis suspected immediately that he was the half-giant gamekeeper. "Firs' years, this way!"

Draco and Artemis stuck near each other in the crowd of first years making their way toward a row of boats ready to cross the lake. They crowded into a boat with Crabbe and Goyle, Artemis shifting as far away from Goyle, who was hovering directly behind her, as possible.

The boats set off and it wasn't long before they were able to see the castle of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry rising up before them.

As much as Artemis knew about Hogwarts, she had never seen it in all of its grandeur. The castle looked absolutely massive, with tall towers, brightly lit windows, and a massive bridge. Hogwarts stood on a cliff overlooking the great lake.

The boats approached the wall of the cliff and the gamekeeper, whose name Artemis had still yet to hear, told them to duck their heads. They did so and one by one, the boats drifted through a curtain of ivy that hid an opening in the side of the cliff. They reached a sort of underground harbor where their boats docked automatically and all of the first year students clambered out, gathering around the large man. He held up a lantern, waiting for all of the students to join him (and then suddenly returned "a boy named Neville's" toad to him). They all made their way down a passage, coming out in front of a set of tall stone steps that led up to the castle.

They walked up them, crowding around the door, and once the man made sure all students were accounted for, he knocked three times on the door.

The doors to Hogwarts opened immediately, revealing a tall, stern looking witch in emerald green robes, staring down at all of the first years. She looked like her face was slightly puckered and her eyes were shrewd, scanning the crowd of eleven year olds. Her features made her immediately recognizable to Artemis as Professor Minerva McGonagall, deputy headmistress of Hogwarts.

"The firs' years, Professor McGonagall," said the man.

"Thank you, Hagrid," she said, stepping out of the way and pulling the door open wide for the students to file through. "I will take them from here."

Artemis could hear the sounds of students as they made their way through the massive opening of the entrance hall. It was certainly large enough to hold her family's guest wing, possibly even part of their residential wing as well.

The first years followed Professor McGonagall across the stone floor and into a smaller side room, where Artemis could hear the sounds of other students talking, clearly waiting on the first years to come in. But the deputy headmistress seemed to have words for the newest Hogwarts students before the welcome fest could begin.

Once all of the newest students were in the room, she began with, "Welcome to Hogwarts." She told them about the Sorting ceremony, how they would be sorted into their Houses for their next seven years and that their Houses would be like their families. They would spend their free time in their House common rooms, take classes with their Housemates, and sleep in their House dormitories. She mentioned House points, and how each House had a noble history with famous witches and wizards from all four Houses. She told them all to make sure they looked their best, with a bit of a sharp glance at "a boy named Neville" who blushed furiously and straightened his cloak, and that she would return for them in a moment.

As she left, all of the new students, except for Artemis and Draco, seemed to whisper about what they would have to do to be Sorted. Artemis, who was standing rather close to the youngest Weasley, whose name she had yet to hear despite her parents' complaints about the family and Draco's earlier encounter with him, heard him say something about a test that would hurt them and had to resist telling him what would actually happen. She didn't want to ruin the surprise.

Suddenly, which is to say that it was surprising to Artemis and all of the other students, a gaggle of ghosts slipped through the back wall of the room, chattering furiously.

Artemis stared at them, having completely forgotten any mention of ghosts lurking in Hogwarts, and watched as Professor McGonagall, who had just returned, shoo them off so she could escort the students to the Sorting Ceremony. She had them quickly form a line and follow directly behind her.

They filed quickly into the Great Hall. Artemis resisted the urge to gasp when she saw how magnificent it was. She had heard the stories from her family but had never expected it to be quite so grand. Older students stared at the newest from their seats at the four long tables, professors watched from their position at the head of the Great Hall, and candles flickered along the wall every few feet, enveloping the large room in a glow.

They crowded into the front of the hall, where Artemis saw the famous Sorting Hat seated on a small stool that Professor McGonagall moved to stand beside. She felt her heart race, knowing what was about to happen, that her life could either change drastically or not in just a few moments (especially knowing that the students would go alphabetically and her last name began with an A). But before she could get too excited, the Hat began to sing.

"Oh you may not think I'm pretty, but don't judge on what you see, I'll eat myself if you can find a smarter hat than me…" The song went on for quite a while, with the Hat explaining the valued traits of the four Houses and that he would be placing them. Then, quite suddenly, McGonagall began to call names.

"Abbott, Hannah!"

A girl with blonde pigtails stumbled up to the stage and was almost immediately sorted into, "Hufflepuff!"

And then, Artemis felt her pulse skip a beat, because Professor McGonagall called for, "Avery, Artemis!"

McGonagall's voice echoed through the Great Hall. Artemis swallowed hard, squared her shoulders, and marched up the steps toward the stool. She turned and sat gracefully and Professor McGonagall lowered the Sorting Hat onto Artemis's head.

" _Ah, an Avery!"_ the Sorting Hat chirped. " _I haven't seen any Averys in quite a while. Your father was the last and that was a few decades ago."_

" _Yes,_ " Artemis confirmed, but she grew annoyed at the hat quickly. She didn't want to bring her family into this. Of course, as she thought this, the hat knew it.

 _"_ _You do not want to be like your family, I see,_ " the hat said thoughtfully. _"I can see why. They worked for You-Know-Who before he died and they still follow those dark ways. That does make things very complicated."_

 _"_ _How is this complicated?"_ Artemis hissed mentally.

 _"_ _Because you have an excellent mind,"_ the hat told her _, "Exceptional at potion making despite your young age - quite a fit for Ravenclaw if I do say so. Exceedingly loyal to those you love and determined to work hard at Hogwarts - a Hufflepuff trait if ever I saw one. Quite the desire to prove your family wrong and to become better than those who followed You-Know-Who - almost ironically a perfect match for Slytherin. But also, a desire to do what's right and to fight tooth and nail for what you want - a true Gryffindor trait indeed."_

" _So you're saying you have no idea where you should put me?"_

 _"_ _Oh, I have quite a good idea, though I don't believe you would be a fan of it."_ She could practically hear the hat laughing in her head, and she knew exactly where he wanted to put her.

" _I don't think I want to be in Slytherin,"_ she said, her voice quiet.

" _And why not? Because it's where your parents want you to be? Slytherin is the House for anyone who wants to prove someone wrong and is willing to do anything for their goals. Your mind tells me that is exactly the kind of person you are. Slytherin would be the perfect fit for you."_

Artemis swallowed hard. _"I don't want to be like my parents. I don't want to be evil."_

" _Then don't be like them - it's as easy as that. I see great things in your future, Artemis Avery. Even better than that, I see good things. And I know where to put you that will help you on your path to greatness - and to goodness."_

Before she could ask if he was really sure, the Sorting Hat yelled out, "Slytherin!"

There was a loud cheer from the Slytherin table as the hat was lifted from her head and Artemis walked down the steps feeling almost lightheaded to take her seat where the first years would sit. Others were sorted into their respective Houses as Artemis processed being put in the House her parents wanted her in so badly. The thought that they would be so proud of her almost made her sick.

But the Sorting Hat told her she would do good things in her future. Was that really possible? As new students joined their tables one at a time, she still thought about it. Could she end up better than her family had?

Only time would tell, she supposed. Hopefully she would prove the Sorting Hat right.

Minutes passed and soon, all of the first years including Harry Potter (Gryffindor), the girl with bushy hair from the train (Hermione Granger, also in Gryffindor), the youngest Weasley boy (Ronald, another Gryffindor), and Draco (Slytherin) had been sorted and were seated at their respective tables.

Professor Dumbledore gave a short speech before the food appeared on the table, consisting of the words, "Nitwit! Blubber! Oddment! Tweak!" Artemis dug into the food, thinking that even growing up in what could only be considered luxury, it was the best food she had ever had in her life.


	3. Mermaids in the Lake

A/N: If I can write regularly, I'll update regularly. Let's see how this goes. Please consider leaving a review, I'd love to hear what you think of the story.

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA

Chapter Three: Mermaids in the Lake

Not long after Artemis finished eating all the food her stomach could handle, Professor Dumbledore announced that it was time for everyone to sing the school song. It took quite a while, since the Weasley twins decided to do a funeral dirge instead of something more quick and upbeat like the rest of the students, but the headmaster never rushed them. Instead, he led them through the rest of the song and then announced that it was time for bed. He told the prefects to lead their new students to the common rooms, and Artemis was glad to finally get to go to bed. It had been a long day, a long trip, and a long sorting ceremony followed by a long dinner. She was ready to find her bed and collapse upon it, even if waking up meant that classes would begin.

Artemis clambered to her feet with the rest of the Slytherin first years, casting a look at Draco, who'd taken a seat a few spots down from her. They followed their prefect, who had not bothered to introduce herself yet, dutifully out of the Great Hall. The Slytherins walked with the rest of the Houses until they approached the Grand Staircase, where the Gryffindors and Ravenclaws went up and the Slytherins and Hufflepuffs went down. Artemis saw Harry and Ron disappear in the crowd of eleven year olds, and stuck close to Draco as they descended the stairs.

The Slytherin common room and doors were located in the dungeons. They separated from the Hufflepuffs near the kitchens and headed deeper into the depths of the castle. It grew colder the deeper they got, and Artemis wrapped her robes tighter around her body to keep the warmth in. She hoped there would be lots of blankets waiting in their dorms when they arrived.

Their prefect, still nameless, stopped in front of a plain stone wall and glanced back at the newest students. Then, turning back to the blank wall, she said the password confidently, " _Salazar_."

Quietly, the stones slid out of the way, revealing a short hallway entrance to the Slytherin common room.

Artemis followed the others in awe, staring at the room around her. The room had an elegant feel, with emerald green and silver décor around the room, fires burning in the fireplaces, and highbacked chairs scattered throughout the room with simple black couches and tables. What struck her the most was the back wall of the common room; across the entire expanse of the wall was a window and on the other side of it, Artemis could see water ripple.

She let out a quiet gasp and turned to the prefect who'd led them there. "Is that the Black Lake?" she asked quietly, her eyes returning quickly to the glass wall. She saw shadowy movements but couldn't make it out.

The prefect smiled, though it came out more as a smirk, and nodded. "Yes, Slytherins have the privilege of seeing the bottom of the Black Lake as we study in our common room." She leaned in conspiratorially and added, "If you watch long enough, you may be able to see the mermaids."

Artemis gasped again, the thought of seeing real mermaids both terrifying and wonderful. "There are mermaids in the Black Lake?" she asked, eyes wide.

The prefect really smiled this time but held a finger up to her lips to signal that she shouldn't tell anyone.

Then, the prefect turned to the rest of the new students. "Alright, everyone, my name is Alyson Rutgers. I am one of your prefects, though there are several of us lurking around at all times. You'll be able to find us by our prefect badges. If you have any questions, come see us, don't go bothering Professor Snape with anything unnecessary, he will certainly not look favorably on those who waste his time."

One of the first years that Artemis hadn't met raised a hand. "Who's Professor Snape?"

Alyson raised an eyebrow like she wasn't quite sure why this boy didn't know who Professor Snape was, but answered the question. Of course, Artemis knew his name and position as well as any others; he was Draco's godfather and she'd seen him more than once outside of Hogwarts.

"He's our head of House, as well as the potions master," Alyson explained. "It would do you all well to remain on his good side; he has a rather nasty temper." She waited a moment longer to see if anyone else had questions before moving on. "This is the Slytherin common room, as you've surely noticed. Boys dorms are located on the left of the main fireplace, girls to the right. Please do not try to go into the dorm room that does not belong to you. I'm sure one of you will try but take my word for it that you won't like what happens. In the morning, follow the crowd of the other students back to the Great Hall for breakfast and you'll pick up your class schedules immediately after. Your trunks have been delivered to your rooms and you'll find your things by your beds. Now, are there any other questions before I send you all off to bed?"

Artemis looked at Draco and he shrugged. They didn't have any questions, and neither did anyone else, so Alyson sent them off to their rooms with an unsaid but certainly implied order that they were to go to sleep immediately and not disturb the rest of the House as they came back from dinner and got settled to sleep. Artemis said goodnight to Draco and they promised to meet in the common room in the morning before going to breakfast.

They went their separate ways and Artemis followed the other first year girls into their dorm room. There were five beds for the girls, and Artemis took the chance to look at their names as the other girls went to their things. Millicent Bulstrode would be occupying the bed to Artemis's right, and in order around the rest of the room were Daphne Greengrass, Tracey Davis, and, to Artemis's extreme displeasure, Pansy Parkinson.

It wasn't that Artemis hated Pansy. Really, it wasn't. But the fact that Pansy embraced her parents' teachings about pure bloods and muggle borns never sat right with Artemis. She'd spent the last few years trying to distance herself from the girl, but their parents spent a lot of time together, almost as much as the Malfoys did, and Artemis could only fake so many headaches and feeling tired days. Fortunately, Pansy also realized that they had nothing in common and never tried to force a friendship.

Unfortunately, Pansy saw Artemis's lack of wanting to be friends as a personal offense and made it her life's mission to make Artemis miserable.

Pansy sneered when she saw Artemis's double A's on her trunk at the foot of the bed beside Pansy's. "Why do I have to sleep next to Avery?" she asked, even though there was no one there to give her an answer.

"Move beds if you'd life," Artemis said, digging into her trunk for her pyjamas. "Otherwise, please just be quiet so we can get some sleep."

Pansy looked furious at her response but said nothing further. Instead, she walked across the room to Daphne's bed, where the girl was already starting to unpack, and begged her to swap places with her. With a roll of her eyes, Daphne agreed and swapped beds with Pansy, who looked incredibly proud of herself.

Artemis rolled her eyes as well and went to the bathroom to change. By the time she got back, the other girls were also changed and getting ready to settle into bed. She ignored Pansy as best she could and settled into bed, staring up at the green canopy hanging above her.

Soon, her mind drifted to what would happen in the coming days. In the morning, she would need to write a letter to her parents, and to Janus, to let them know what had happened in the Sorting ceremony. She knew that her parents would be so proud of her, and she would hate that she had made them proud. Every fiber of her being wanted to disappoint her parents in every way possible. To them, being a Slytherin and being an Avery meant blood purity; it meant believing that muggle-borns were not real witches and wizards, that they didn't deserve the magic they had. But Artemis had seen years earlier what this kind of thinking did to people.

She'd snuck the Daily Prophet one morning before her dad could read it and saw the front page. The headline read, "Mass Murdered Muggle-borns: Ten Dead and More Wounded from You-Know-Who's Followers." The article talked about how there had been an attack on muggle-borns the night before that resulted in ten deaths and over a dozen more injured and in St. Mungo's for help. The perpetrators weren't caught, but it was You-Know-Who's mark floating the sky above the scene and it had obviously been the work of Death Eaters.

Artemis had seen news articles like this before, but that was the first morning she noticed her father's limp as he walked into the kitchen for breakfast.

She was only nine years old, but she'd managed to put two and two together. Janus was too young to understand, and she didn't bother trying to explain it. So, she kept it to herself, but she observed every move her parents made after that moment. The more she watched, the more she saw. They came and went at all hours of the night, usually coming home wounded or with blood on them. They always tried to hide it, but Artemis was clever – she could see what they were hiding from her. She realized pretty quickly that her parents were Death Eaters, active followers of You-Know-Who, even though he had been dead for almost eight years.

From then on, she made it her life's mission to go against her parents. She couldn't do much while she was still at home and knew that her chance would come when she went to Hogwarts after she turned eleven. Until then, however, she was surrounded by it. Her parents, their friends, her friends, it seemed like everyone she knew was obsessed with blood purity. The more she heard talk of it, the more she despised hearing it.

She'd tried talking to Draco about it once, but he'd shrugged her off. "It doesn't matter what our parents do," he'd said. "And it doesn't matter what we do. Magic is magic. If they have it, they have it."

She'd taken his words to heart, but it seemed less and less likely that he still believed them. Hearing him call the girl with bushy hair, Hermione Granger, a mudblood had struck a chord with her. It made her remember everything about why she wanted to do what she wanted to do with her life.

She wanted to become a potions master, the one thing she knew she was good at, and become the best in the world. And when she was so good that her parents could not ignore her, she would tell them how wrong they were about muggle-borns. She would tell them that they were wrong, and that anyone who had magic deserved it, and that muggle-borns and muggles weren't less than witches and wizards just because of their families and blood status.

She fell asleep looking forward to the day that would happen.

The next morning when she woke up, Pansy had already left the room and the other girls were beginning to stir. Artemis got up and put on her new robes, the ones embellished with the Slytherin crest and colors. Even though she hated the thought of making her parents proud by being in Slytherin, she knew in her heart that she belonged with the clever, cunning, and ruthless students she now lived with. Artemis prided herself on nothing more than her cleverness and planned to use it to her benefit in any way she could.

And, she thought, the green looks spectacular with her hair.

When she was ready to head to breakfast, she wrote a quick letter to her parents, telling them that she was safe at Hogwarts and had been sorted into Slytherin. She winced as she wrote that part, but they would ask if she didn't volunteer the information. She sealed it and wrote another short letter to Janus, promising him that she would write often. She'd send them off with Meg after classes, but she would have to go in search of the owlery.

Draco was already waiting for her in common room when she finished up. They weren't the last ones to head up to breakfast, but the crowd Alyson had suggested they follow was not much of a crowd.

"What took so long?" Draco grumbled, walking side by side with her as they followed a couple of sixth years out of the common room.

"I wrote to my parents and Janus," she explained, shifting her bag on her shoulder. She didn't know what books she was going to need for classes, but she didn't want to have to come back down to the dungeons after getting her schedule, so she'd brought them all with her. Her bag was heavy, and she hoped that she would learn a lightening charm quickly so she didn't have a bruised shoulder after just one week of classes.

Draco scoffed. "I wrote them last night. I didn't want to wake up early."

The rest of the walk was filled with talk of what classes they would be taking, pondering what their professors were going to be like for the ones they did not already know, wondering what they were going to do with their spare time.

"I'm going to go to the library after classes," Artemis said, excitement filling her. "I want to learn as much about potions as I can."

"At least wait a week, 'Mis," Draco said, "we haven't even started classes yet!"

"But I want to be the best at potions," she argued as they neared the Great Hall, which was swarming with activity.

"You should've been a Ravenclaw," Draco told her.

She made a face at him and they settled into the benches at the Slytherin table. They practically inhaled the food, but Artemis couldn't help but think about what Draco had said.

Did she belong in Ravenclaw? She didn't think so. The Sorting Hat had mentioned that she could have fit in there, with the others who valued wit, learning, and intelligence. But he'd also told her she could have fit in with Hufflepuff and Gryffindor as well. She'd been placed in Slytherin though. Slytherin, home of Salazar Slytherin, for the cunning, the ambitious, the resourceful. Artemis walked into Hogwarts thinking she wanted to be anything but Slytherin, anything to irritate her parents.

Now, eating breakfast on her first morning in the castle, all she wanted to do was defend her place with the green and silver.


	4. The Potions Master

Chapter Four: The Potions Master

Friday morning, she and Draco made their way together down to the potions classroom immediately following breakfast. They had double potions with the Gryffindors, and only one of them was excited about it.

"Double potions!' Artemis cheered quietly as they navigated the stairs down to the dungeons.

Draco didn't look anywhere near as thrilled as she was. "With the Gryffin-bores," he reminded her. "Stupid Potter and his Weasel friend will be in there."

Artemis rolled her eyes, adjusting her bag on her shoulder. "Why do they irritate you so, Draco?" she asked. "What's wrong with them being friends?"

He grumbled but didn't really give her an answer.

"Is it because Potter didn't want to be your friend?" she guessed.

He glared at her. "Of course not!" he defended. "I don't care if Potter wanted to be my friend or not. I don't need friends."

Artemis knew that he was just defensive because she was right, but his words still hurt. "So, you don't need me then?" she asked.

He stumbled over his words for a moment before composing himself. "That's completely different," he said firmly. "You don't count as my friend, you're practically my sister. It doesn't count."

"What about Crabbe and Goyle?" she asked. "Aren't they your friends?"

Draco rolled his eyes at her question. "Do I need to explain my every thought to you?"

Artemis realized that he was getting irritated and stopped pushing the issue. Things had been tense over the first few days of class. Draco always seemed to be in a terrible mood and was spending more and more time with Crabbe and Goyle than with her. It hurt, since Artemis wasn't making friends nearly as easily as the other students seemed to be. Living with Pansy Parkinson was not easy, and she seemed to have turned Tracey and Millicent against her. The only girl living with her that didn't seem to hate Artemis was Daphne, but she wouldn't go as far as to call them friends. With Draco only spending time with her in the mornings on their way to breakfast, and that morning on the way down to potions, she felt like she was losing the only friend she had.

She wanted to bring it up with Draco, but then they were at the door to the potions classroom and it seemed as if Professor Snape was waiting on them to begin. But when they found their seats, Draco with Crabbe and Goyle and Artemis with Daphne, he had not yet begun.

Suddenly, Professor Snape began reading from a list of students, taking roll. Artemis called out a quick, "Present" with her name, near the very beginning, and tuned out the rest of the names. That is, until he paused at Harry Potter.

"Ah yes," Professor Snape said softly. "Harry Potter. Our new – celebrity."

Artemis's head snapped to the side when she heard Draco start snickering with Crabbe and Goyle and she frowned. Her eyes found Harry's across the classroom and he seemed to be embarrassed at the potion master's sudden attention. Professor Snape, however, moved on quickly.

When he was done taking attendance, the professor talked about what true potion making was. How they would learn the subtle science and exact art of potion making, how to bottle fame, brew glory, and even put a stopper in death. Artemis listened with rapt attention, but suddenly, Snape zeroed in on Harry Potter once again.

Artemis couldn't help but feel bad for Potter. The fact that her head of house was seemingly taunting him with his lack of knowledge seemed cruel to her. It wasn't Potter's fault that he didn't know that adding powdered root of asphodel to an infusion of wormwood produced draught of the living death, or that monkshood and wolfsbane were the same thing. Even Artemis, who'd read the fifth year potions book that Professor Snape was obviously taking these questions from, couldn't remember where a bezoar came from.

Hermione Granger, sitting a few seats from Potter, seemed to know all three, though, holding her arm high in the air, half out of her seat with the eagerness to answer Professor Snape's questions.

Draco and his friends laughed, and Artemis found it hard to tune them out. Their snickers echoed in her ears as Professor Snape rebuked Potter for not knowing the answers and ordered Hermione back in her seat.

Artemis copied down the answers like Snape ordered, even though she knew them, and remembered as he said it that a bezoar came from the stomach of a goat. She didn't want to risk his wrath already, though he seemed to pay little attention to the Slytherins as he spent most of the class snapping at the Gryffindors potions. He took points slowly from Harry Potter specifically, for his attitude when he didn't know the answers and for not correcting "a boy named Neville" Neville Longbottom's potion before it exploded, sending him to the hospital wing. Potter didn't argue, but glared at Snape as the potions master walked away from them.

He approached Artemis's cauldron towards the end of class, observing her as she finished her potion to cure boils. Daphne had been copying her steps the entire way, but Artemis's had clearly turned out a perfect purple while Daphne's was an unhealthy green. He nodded once as he passed, circling the classroom looking at other potions.

"Five points to Slytherin for Artemis Avery's perfect cure for boils," he said as the class finished an hour later. "Class dismissed." He didn't bother sticking around, disappearing behind a door at the back of the classroom and leaving the students to clean up their own messes.

"How did you do that?" Daphne demanded. "I copied everything you did!"

Artemis shrugged nonchalantly. "You didn't stew the horned slugs properly."

Daphne grumbled and left the classroom in a huff. Draco approached her a moment later, glancing into her cauldron with almost a sneer pasted on his face. "How on earth did you get it perfect?" he asked. "He complimented my potion making abilities and didn't give me points."

Artemis looked at him and saw that he was legitimately jealous of how she had beaten him out for the "best potion" on their first day. "You know I've been reading potions books since I was seven Draco," she reminded him. "A cure for boils is simple. I could tutor you, if you'd like."

She realized a moment too late that this was the wrong thing to say. His almost sneer turned into an absolute sneer. "I don't need tutoring," he snapped. "My cure for boils was perfect."

She wanted to tell him that it wasn't, not quite, but she also didn't want to risk losing his friendship entirely, so she said nothing.

He turned and left with Crabbe and Goyle, leaving Artemis sitting by herself as the classroom emptied out. She sat there a moment longer, until everyone else was gone and she was completely alone.

With a heavy sigh, feeling like she was just alienating herself, Artemis packed up her books and notes from class and headed to the library, determined to work on her homework and avoid the people she called her friends that she'd made angry for as long as she could.

Draco sat next to her at dinner that evening with a heavy sigh. "I'm sorry," he said. "I do need you as my friend."

Artemis smiled. "Thanks, Draco," she said. She reached over to hug him, and he flinched away but she hugged him anyway. There were snickers from down the table and he pulled away from her as quickly as possible, but the fact that he'd let her hug him counted for everything in her book.

The next few days, Draco spent a good chunk of time with Artemis, walking to classes together, eating together, spending time just relaxing in the common room together. They played a lot of wizard's chess, which belonged to Draco, and Artemis managed to at least beat him as many times as he beat her. Daphne tagged along with them every now and then, watching as they played chess, saying that she wasn't very good at it, heading to classes together, doing homework with them.

By the end of their second week of classes, Artemis felt like she'd gotten her old friend back.

By the time the third week of classes started back up, it seemed like Draco was pulling away again. After they'd finished their homework over the weekend, he'd gone back to spending more time with Crabbe, Goyle, and Blaise, leaving Artemis to her own devices. She spent more time with Daphne, trying to teach her wizard's chess. In exchange, Daphne taught Artemis some tricks to get better at gobstones.

They settled into life at Hogwarts, and Artemis tried to forget about what was likely going on at home. But every time she saw Harry Potter, she was reminded of her parents.

Her parents, who had been writing her every week, whom she had only responded to once since she told them about being sorted into Slytherin. She was right – they were monumentally proud that their daughter was following in their footsteps with the green and silver. Janus was happy too and told her that he was going to redecorate his room green because he wanted to support her. She didn't tell him not to, just that green would be a great color.

She especially didn't want to think about what her parents were teaching Janus, who didn't read the newspaper in the morning like she did, even as a young child, and who likely wouldn't find out about their parents' indiscretions with the dark lord.

Artemis sighed heavily over her most recent potions essay. It was easy to write, just tedious, and the more she wrote, the more her mind began to wander to her family.

She wanted nothing more than for her little brother to start Hogwarts already. She thought that he would be a great fit in Gryffindor, and while that may not make her parents happy, she would be more than thrilled that he wouldn't be surrounded by the same people she was.

For example, Pansy Parkinson, who refused to just leave her alone and get on with her own life at Hogwarts. Every time Artemis returned to her dorm room, Pansy had some snark to throw at Artemis.

"Did you dress yourself in the dark this morning, Avery?"

"Your hair looks like a fairy was killed in it."

"Spent the day sucking up to McGonagall again, did you?"

Some days, she was more creative than others, and sometimes, Artemis managed to have a good comeback to whatever Pansy could throw at her.

"Sure did, unlike you, who brushed her hair with a bowtruckle."

"Fairy blood makes my hair very soft, thanks for noticing!"

"Better than sucking up to Professor Snape, who doesn't even notice you're in his class."

Other days, she had nothing but a sigh ready for Pansy when she showed up in her dorm room. She'd slump into the room, weighed down by her heavy bags and thoughts of Janus, and collapse on her bed without changing, trying her best to ignore Pansy.

She knew she would have to do something to deal with Pansy at some point, but she wasn't ready for that yet.

Artemis did her usual routine of slouching into her dorm room late that night, just before curfew, and dropped onto her bed without changing. She didn't even hear Pansy's latest insult – she fell fast asleep.


End file.
